Sheikh Saed, Silwan
The situation at the Sheikh Saed checkpoint, the most difficult and unreasonably located of all the Jerusalem checkpoints, continues to deteriorate. If privatized, it will get worse, and more difficult to invigilate. A visit to the boys' school in A-Tur, daily treated to "special treatment" by border police, is essential.
7:00 - 8:00 Sheikh Saed
Present at the checkpoint are a border-policewoman (checking), a border-police soldier, and a private guard who issues orders as though he's in charge of the entire personnel. He refused to identify himself. At some point two b.p. command cars appeared and another border-policeman joined the group, giving orders.
1. Documents and original permits were required of all pupils of all ages. Photos were not accepted, and many girls and some boys -- all crossing the checkpoint daily -- were sent back. We asked the soldier whether she recognizes them and she replied that she doesn't, and that "many terrorists have crossed this checkpoint." One parent, a local resident, tried to persuade the soldier and the guard that the girls (aged 12-16) are pupils familiar to all the residents, but to no avail.
The schools of Jabel Mukkaber were emptier today. (Is this good for the State of Israel?)
On the other hand, bags were barely checked -- if there is indeed a security danger, should not this have been a priority?
2. Two men over 60 holding green ID's were not allowed to cross here, only through Olive Terminal or Qalandia. One of them was finally allowed to pick up some loaves of bread from a car parked at the foot of the checkpoint, and return immediately. We checked with headquarters and were told that Sheikh Saed residents over 60 are allowed to cross without special permits. The soldier refused to listen, and headquarters promised to relay these orders.
3. We filmed a woman with a bag containing two loaves of bread -- she was arguing with the soldier who claimed that "goods may not pass here." Finally, she let the woman through, and then the guard, backed by the soldier, demanded our phone in order to erase the pictures, on the grounds that filming at the checkpoint is forbidden and that we were photographing the soldiers. He ordered us to leave, scolding with much animosity. When we showed him the IDF permission for human rights organisations to be present at the checkpoints (which are civilian areas, unless temporarily declared otherwise by a general's order), as well as to film, he refused to identify himself.
4. We sent a complaint to Hanna Barag which she tried to send on urgently to the Envelope border police. We emphasized that we had not been allowed to go up the hill and return via the checkpoint (entry to Sheikh Saed is open to Israelis), despite the above-mentioned IDF permit. We should note that both at Olive Terminal and Qalandia we cross to the Palestinian side and return the same way, collecting feedback from those passing through.
5. Residents complained a lot about the female soldier who checks painstakingly and sends people back, and they also said that yesterday she had closed the Sawwahara checkpoint for a while.
8:20 "Shama" boys' school (1500 pupils, grades 7 to 12)
We came (right turn immediately before Mukassad) in the wake of publications on the network of daily harassment of pupils, and Nir Hasson's piece on imprisonment of children in Jerusalem. We co-ordinated our visit (at Uri Agnon's suggestion) with the "Rais" of A-tur, who was not able to accompany us on this morning.
We arrived just before the start of classes and did not see a border-policeman near the school, nor on the main road or at the entrance from a side street. We talked to the deputy Head and the computer teacher who explained the complexity of the situation. Boys from all neighbourhoods of Jerusalem attend (the school is considered one of the best). There is a permanent presence of border police at the intersection up from Wadi Joz (we saw the police van with a team of soldiers/policemen), and border policemen patrol and guard the route through which many Israelis and tourists cross to the Mount of Olives and the cemetry there. In the mornings and early afternoons there are many gatherings of pupils waiting for the bus. During this time stone-throwing occurs and the boys escape into the alleys of A-tur. According to the deputy Head, the border police grab whoever they can -- pupils who have not thrown stones -- and arrest them, and when teachers try to intervene, they too get beaten. He also said that there were border police provocations during the breaks -- they try to enter the school, and a few times they pushed their rifle butts through the iron door to the school yard. We urged the school to photograph as much as possible (so many of them have smart phones). We promised to visit from time to time in the mornings, as well as in other schools on this street (there is an elementary school which is also experiencing problems).